By any definition Mike May was an exceptional person, breaking world records in downhill speed skiing, joining the CIA, and becoming a successful inventor, entrepreneur, and family man. Amazingly, May accomplished this despite being blinded by a chemical explosion at age three, tackling one adventure after another and "crashing through" to success. In this Best Book of the Year according to the Chicago Tribune, the author of Shadow Divers profiles May during what was to prove his most challenging adventure: learning to see again in his 40s after a revolutionary stem cell transplant made it possible for him to regain his vision.

"Robert Kurson's Shadow Divers, a tale of a deadly search for a German U-boat off the coast of New Jersey, became an instant classic among adventure readers who enjoy well-told, high-octane nonfiction. In Crashing Through, the author finds an equally compelling subject. Kurson's journalistic instincts are strong, and tight writing and thorough research reflect his journalist background.... [The book also focuses on] Kurson's lucid exploration of the brain's circuitry and fascinating details of how we can have vision without really seeing."—Bookmarks Magazine